Back to Basics

This year we had beautiful fall weather. One Sunday afternoon we decided to get out and enjoy some of it before the inevitable gloominess of winter hit. We went to a beautiful little park with perfect little "hiking" (hiking in quotes because no mountains were involved) trails (not too long) through a forest preserve. It was a great way to spend an hour on the sabbath, because it truly is amazing how beautifully our world was created.

ND vs. Pittsburgh

FINALLY it was Parker's turn to get to go to the game. Every time the other kids got to go he would say, "but mom, I want to go in there (pointing at the stadium)." So he was very excited that it was his turn. And he lasted about 20 minutes until he was ready to go. BUT it is partly my fault because that happened to be a busy Saturday for us, so I didn't get his nap in and believe, he needs his beauty rest. So, he wasn't being bad, he just told Matt he was tired and ready to go home. I think he fell asleep before the car even left the parking lot. But the good news is he has nocomprehension of time, so he thinks it was the greatest game ever and has no ideahe was only there 20 minutes.

Fall Ball

Here is Brandon's last game of the season. He had great coaches this year and his team was undefeated (unofficially, they don't really start keeping score till next year, but all the boys know who wins or loses). I think his favorite position is short stop and he has been getting some pretty good hits. So far baseball is his favorite, but he is eagerly awaiting the age when he gets to play football (you have to be 8 around here). Personally, I hope he sticks with baseball....a little bit easier on the nerves.

Fall Ball

Here is Brandon's last game of the season. He had great coaches this year and his team was undefeated (unofficially, they don't really start keeping score till next year, but all the boys know who wins or loses). I think his favorite position is short stop and he has been getting some pretty good hits. So far baseball is his favorite, but he is eagerly awaiting the age when he gets to play football (you have to be 8 around here). Personally, I hope he sticks with baseball....a little bit easier on the nerves.

Homework

After the kids got back into the swing of things like school and homework, Parker would really miss them during the day. So sometimes he does his "homework" when they are at school so he can be just like them. He really believes he is doing his homework and is concentrating soo hard.

Crunchy, Crunchy Apples

So, Parker started preschool this year and LOVES it. He has great teachers, Mrs. O and Mrs. Romey, and has made a cute little friend John. He comes home everyday and tells me what he and his friend John played that day. He also is a little tattle tale and will tell me what kids were not using their listening ears or if they took a toy away from another kid. This is his first field trip and we went to an apple orchard nearby in Michigan. We got to pick lots of yummy apples, have a little picnic in the orchard and try out a tractor. After the field-trip was over, Parker and I stayed behind and picked some green tomatoes so I could make some fried green tomatoes. My grandpa Blaine made them for us over the summer and I had had a craving ever since. Needless to say, mine didn't turn out quite like his. Maybe next year I'll have to practice with him, cuz they seriously were delish!

ND vs. Stanford

Emma's turn! She picked to go to the Stanford game, and again, unfortunately we lost (I know it's not looking like a promising season). She and Matt went tailgating without us because the weather was pretty crummy, it had been raining off an on the entire day and made everything all wet. They made it to the trumpet concert in the dome which was pretty cool and she thought the game was great too, even though it was wet and pretty cold. She learned the cheers and also got to do touchdown push-ups.

ND Baseball Practice

Brandon's fall ball coach set up a practice on the ND baseball field. It was pretty neat to practice on a "real" field, although it was just a "little" bit bigger than the little league diamond so he slept good that night. :)

ND vs. Michigan

Next was Caitlyn's turn. Unfortunately, we lost, but it was a close game and Cait said she had fun. Although, I think she might have been more interested in the cheerleaders than in the game. :) She was a little more shy doing the cheers and the push-ups were not her thing, but the usher by our section made sure she had a great time. He let her come down to the rail to get a better look and called the leprechaun over for a photo op. At the bottom you can see her standing in front of the library, or more commonly know as "touchdown Jesus." You used to be able to see the mosaic from the football stadium at the end of one of the goal posts, hence the nickname, but since they added the upper bowl on to the stadium you can't really see it anymore.

ND vs. Purdue

Brandon got to go to the first game of the season. We all went and tailgated, but we only have 2 tickets, so we have to take turns going into the game. Plus it is fun to have a little one on one time with Dad. I asked Brandon what I should write and he said just write that ND CRUSHED them! This year we have great seats, and even though the student section can get a little rowdy sometimes, he definitely had a great time. He was learning and doing all the cheers and per tradition, got to be a push-up guy. Each time ND scores a touchdown someone from the crowd gets lifted over everyones heads and gets pushed up and down (push-ups) for each point that is on the score board. We are definitely all looking forward to our turn!

Soooo Last Minute

We have been saying for forever that we wanted to take the kids camping because there are some great spots to go that are not too far from our house. However, we found ourselves in September and we still hadn't gone yet. So, one Friday afternoon when the kids got home from school I decided that we were going to go for just a little over-nighter. Matt didn't get done with his classes until 5, so the kids and I ran around getting our camping supplies ready and packing the van so we could leave when Matt got home. We were pretty much ready and hopped in the car and were on our way. We headed over the the Indiana Dunes and pulled into our spot just in time to set up our tent and start a fire before it got dark. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, played games in our tent, and snuggled down for a chilly night. We woke the next day to a yummy donut and juice breakfast and headed over to the dunes state park which is on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is kinda funny because we have lived in the Chicago area 2 times and never made it to the beaches of Lake Michigan, but here we finally get to see it up close in Indiana. The water was F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G cold, so it was totally ok that we only had a little over an hour to swim. Actually, I am pretty sure I was the only one that got in farther than my knees, everyone else was being party poopers (Matt). Anyways, the kids LOVED every minute of it and as you can see were tuckered out, which made for a nice quiet ride home. :)

First things First

Yes the time has come for another year of school. I think the kids were all excited to start a new year, well I guess as excited as they can be going back to school. Actually, Caitlyn was very much looking forward to being able to stay all day and being able to eat lunch at school. They all have great teachers and we are looking forward to a great year. While I am looking forward to getting back in a routine, I am definitely not looking forward to the early hours.

PS...take a look at Parker's bag. Yep I made it! Just a little proud.

Endure

Ok, so since February of 2010 I have been potty training Parker. And pretty much it is already the WORST part of motherhood, but Parker is so completely stubborn it was 10 times worse. Basically I couldn't really say he was completely potty trained until the end of the summer, not because he couldn't get the concept, he just chose not to. Let me give you a scenario to explain the situation. We are at my moms house and he is wanting more juice. I tell him to go in and go potty first and then I will get his juice. He then gets upset and starts throwing a temper tantrum and I tell him he can't have any juice until he goes potty. So what does he do? Yep, sits down on my mom's kitchen floor and goes potty all over the floor. Exactly. So needless to say, now that Ireally don't need a diaper bag I am pretty sure I have earned this. Don't you think? :)

Summer, Summer, Summer (part 2)

The summer ended with Parker's 3rd birthday. We had a little family celebration, which Parker thought was great. I can't believe how fast time seems to be going by...it truly is bitter sweet. I miss my cute little, chubby babe that I could burrito wrap and snuggle, but it is so fun to hear him talk and see his little personality (most of the time :) and he is so excited about preschool. So, on we go to another fun and exciting phase of life.



One last hurrah before real life starts and we all head home and start school and schedules. It always goes by way too fast. Thanks mom and dad for a great summer!



Oh yeah, we did a little bit of this (work), this summer too. :)

****The Big Day****
Kurtis and Haylie

August 12, 2010

I think the girls and I might have snuck away to do a little shopping.

Lake Powell. Between all the weddings and parties we still had time to squeeze in a week at Lake Powell. For the first time in a long time we had some scary weather. It rained quite a lot and it was pretty cold, cold enough to be grateful for the sweatshirt you always pack but never end up needing. One day we were there the winds started picking up and there were white caps on the waves out in the bay. Some day campers next to us had to come take shelter because of the high winds blowing sand every where. But we had some good tie downs and our boat held strong. I am really proud of all the kids. They all tried knee boarding, water skiing, tubing and cliff jumping at least once. Brandon is quite the little daredevil...he got up on the knee board and started doing 360's without anyone telling him and he was jumping off the high cliffs with uncle Jerry and uncle Jordan. Emma got up on both skii's and kneeboarding and after a lot of talking, ok let's be honest, BRIBING, Caitlyn gave it a good try. She is now enjoying those Calico Critters she got...thanks Aunt Alli. We played lots of games, played in the sand, and even got to ride on some Jet skiis (thanks Paxton and Kara). All and all it was a great trip, but we missed those who weren't there this year! Thanks grandpa for all your hardwork!

Haylie's bridal shower. As always, good food, good people, good fun.

This is Grandpa's summer pride and joy. Yes, he grew it all by himself.

T-R-O-U-B-L-E...BUT SUCH GOOD FRIENDS!

The climb. So we decided to try something different this year and took the kids to hike Mt. Timpanogas. Grandpa came with us and THANKFULLY grandma stayed home with Parker---If you can't tell from the picture, I made it (barely :) and can't picture having to carry Parks up the mountain, since most nights he can't even make it up the stairs to bed without me carrying him (ok so he might be SLIGHTLY spoiled). But, it was a great time and the kids were real troopers, Brandon and Davis practically ran the whole way up the mountain. The cave at the end was really great and it happened that some people from our part of Indiana were out visiting Utah and taking the tour at the same time...man it's a small world.

You've heard shop til you drop? Well this summer it was PLAY til you drop. This would often be the case. Parker just konk out totally exhausted in the middle of playing.

Welcome to the Wild West. Grandma (and grandpa) like to throw a little party for the kids. This year it was the wild west. They made some tasty grub, got to dress up like a cowboy/cowgirl, played some games (including a sunflower seed spittin contest), panned for gold, traded in their gold pieces at the trading post, and even learned a little line dancing. The kids always have so much fun, thanks grandma and grandpa!



My Grandma and Grandpa were the Grand Marshals of the Pioneer Day festivities, so we got to get up Xtra EARLY (notice Tyler sleeping) to see them drive by in the carriage in the parade. Hey we even got to see a group of missionaries parade by! Amazingly it was still blazing hot even though it was so early and I think more cotton candy ended up ON parker rather than IN him.



Pioneer Days Rodeo...I think our favorite parts were the bull riding, mutin bustin, the rodeo queen contestants, barrel racing, and the motor cross demo at the end. Oh, and of course all the yummy treats, gotta love the ginormous snow cones.



Happy Birthday, Grandma Nanny!
What better way to celebrate 93 great years than a little pizza pool party. We love you Grandma!

****The BIG day*****
Amy and Tyler
July 16, 2010